Infinite Variant
by VideoGameNut
Summary: You ever wonder what it would be like to wake up in the Nasuverse? Don't lie, y'know you have. Well, here's a little secret for you; it's TERRIFYING! A world of Vampires, Monsters, psychopathic Magi and SO many more things in between. But I'm not interested in being some monsters meal or a lab experiment. When shit hits the fan, you can BET I'll be ready. Just you watch.
1. Chapter 1Wait The Wizard DIDN'T Do It?

Chapter 1

 **Wait. The Wizard DIDN'T Do It?**

xXx

oOoOoOoOo Eric oOoOoOoOo

' _Where am I?_ '

That was the only question floating in his mind as he drifted across the emptiness. The single thought seemed to be all he could even think at all in the strange void he found himself in. But maybe that wasn't quite the only question he should be asking.

' _Am I dead?_ '

His memories stirred at that, a basic picture seeming to form in the recesses of his own mind. He remembered shouting and…..and a gunshot. Then there were screams and he moved. The gunshots got louder and he tackled someone, unheeding the bleeding wounds in his own body from the bullet holes. Thrashing, punching, even biting the man with the gun before everything went dark.

Before he found himself _here_. In this strange void that was, apparently, the place people went when they died.

…Wow, those priests _really_ messed up about the whole Heaven thing, didn't they?

No matter how you sliced it, this place couldn't _possibly_ be called a Heaven. Probably not a Hell, either, unless those religious posers got _that_ wrong, too. And now he was stuck in here with nothing but his memories to keep him company. Was this really all he had to look forward to?

'… _.Well, this sucks-_ '

And then it happened. A strange pulling sensation. Wait, not pulling, more like falling. Or flowing, maybe. Whatever you called it, he somehow felt himself _move_.

So he watched as he moved through that empty void, that endless blackness, and slowly….he started to _see_. He saw as the void around him began to change, somehow becoming less empty before his very eyes. He couldn't accurately say what he was even seeing, it evaded any form of description.

It started out as streaks of….material? Light? It sure wasn't like anything he'd seen before. It looked like some kinda….solidified emptiness. That was all he could say it was, even as it shifted in shapes and colors that honestly made his head hurt.

Then more of the strange streaks appeared, seeming to somehow multiply and converge across his vision. First there was only a few, then he blinked and there was dozens, then more and less and more every time he blinked or looked away and back. It shifted into shapes and forms he couldn't even begin to describe, creatures and places and THINGS than he couldn't make sense of. Trying to keep them in his sights just seemed to give him migraines, as if his mind was refusing to comprehend it.

And that was before he saw _IT_.

Just catching the briefest glimpse seemed to set his mind on fire, like acid was being poured into his own skull. A gigantic _THING_ in the void, every shape and color and yet none of them. Everything and nothing, life and death, the beginning and the end, it was _ALL_ of these and more and yet none at all.

The fire in his mind grew worse as he seemed to get closer, flying towards it as it seemed to inexorably _pull_ him in. Like he was just water being sucked towards a hole in the sink, like dust being pulled through the Event Horizon of a Black Hole.

And he could feel his mind slip away with every passing moment as he moved closer. His vision dulling and his mind swimming, the strange sensation of every memory starting to fade until he realized he was becoming a blank slate.

He felt it as his body closed into the strange thing, felt his mind slip away into oblivion as his vision went black. He could even feel the sensation of his body disappearing as he closed in. It was just a matter of time before he was gone.

But right before he reached it, right before the bizarre oddity could claim him, right as his mind was on the verge of vanishing, a single thought roared inside his mind.

' _NO!_ '

And everything stopped. Literally _everything_ around him seemed to freeze, as if rendered silent at his refusal to simply disappear into the void. He wasn't pulled any further, seeming to just be kept still in space.

He wasn't sure how, but he had the odd feeling he was being…observed. Like _something_ in the blackness was observing him, measuring him as it came to a decision. It was actually a pretty terrifying feeling, the clarity that something immeasurably _vast_ was looming over him, deciding on a fate he had no control or influence over.

There was really nothing more terrifying than realizing your own life was truly out of your own hands. Some might find it humbling, but he personally thought those people were idiots for thinking that.

Even as these thoughts moved through his head, he still felt the sensation of something looking him over. What's more is that he could've sworn it wasn't just looking at him _physically_ , but looking at his _Soul_ in some way. He couldn't think of some way to physically describe it, but he still couldn't help but feel it.

He wasn't sure how long it lasted, anywhere between minutes to hours, but he could at least tell when it was over. It was like he suddenly became lighter, like a very stifling presence suddenly disappeared and he could breathe without problems again.

….Well, if he could even breathe at _all_ here.

He was pretty sure he was about to say something snappy by the time he started moving again. But instead of moving towards the huge obstruction, he instead felt himself moving to the side and around it. It felt oddly like he was being shunted aside by it, allowed to leave so it could attend to more important matters. Was it sentient in some way?

He didn't have long to think about that, unfortunately, because he quickly found himself speeding up. The moment he got a certain distance away, he seemed to immediately accelerate through the void towards some far off corner of nowhere. He was going so fast that he'd probably be screaming his lungs right out. Well, if he still _had_ working lungs, it was kinda hard to tell if he really still had a body at _all_.

So he silently flew through the darkness, tossed away by that bizarre oddity that still made his head hurt just by thinking about it. Thrown off to some other pitch black corner of oblivion.

Or that's what he _would've_ thought, if he hadn't suddenly felt some strange transition as he continued flying. As he felt the space around him begin to twist and get heavier, like he was diving deep into the crushing depths of an ocean and suddenly got pulled back up.

Light and heavy, up and down, fast and slow, all these different feelings and sensations wracked his body all at once as he kept moving towards some unknown objective. Even as the front of his body was suddenly swallowed up by some strange light and he felt air on his body again.

Only to find himself waking up in a world in flames.

oOoOoOoOo Kischur Zelretch Schweinorg oOoOoOoOo

" _Sigh_. And I was having such a relaxing day."

Oh yes, quite relaxing in fact. Kicking back to watch his dastardly plans unfold through various viewing portals was one of the highlights of his days. Watching the embarrassment and shame appear on people's faces, a nice bit of music in the background, all with a nice drink of well-aged Chianti wine, oh it was _wonderful_.

It was even better today because he'd worked on some _really_ good ones to give these boring letdowns some excitement. Sitting down in their chairs only to activate a spell that made their clothes disappear, whole classes finding themselves dumped in Hawaii, choruses of dogs howling rock and roll songs, and so many other wonderful treats. It was _heavenly_ seeing it all come together into a symphony of delicious chaos as he formed a pyramid with his fingers and said "just as planned".

' _So why, oh WHY, did something have to interrupt it?_ '

He'd long since set up systems to warn him of anything dangerous enough to warrant his attention. A globe made up of precious metals with a series of rings constantly swirling around it. The rings themselves each contained a gem filled with prana, used as a marker for anything that fit into their programming as worthy of his attention. Upon discovering something, a ring would rotate in a position for the gemstone to hover over the area in question and give a pinpoint location with a tiny beam of light.

Such a thing had happened often enough, but this case actually seemed particularly odd. Why, you ask? Because it wasn't just one ring and gemstone showing a location. _ALL_ of the rings had ceased their rotation to focus on a single point. He might be old, but his memory was still sharp enough to know _that_ had never happened before.

And then he saw the location. Japan. Right in Fuyuki City in the middle of the Holy Grail War.

' _Wonderful._ '

The Wizard Marshall was a very confident man, fully aware of his abilities and how it compared to the rest of the world. He was well aware of what level he stood on as master of the Kaleidoscope and a Dead Apostle Ancestor, not to mention his great capability for conventional Magecraft that he'd honed over the centuries.

Yet that awareness also made him aware that there could always be people stronger, however rare they might be. It was a lesson he'd learned while battling Crimson Moon, a fight that made it clear he could never allow himself to dull. And that awareness extended to the Holy Grail Wars.

There weren't many people or entities of the modern day that could challenge him, he could even count the number of real threats to his power on one hand (two if he was being _very_ generous), but the Grail Wars weren't limited to the here and now. They pulled heroes and legends from across history in a contest of arms, each of them the pinnacle of might in their own age, in the era's where Humanity was far more potent than it was now. He was well aware of his own power, he had bested Crimson Moon after all, and he was duly confident as a result. But more than anything, or _anywhere_ , the Holy Grail War was one of the _only_ situations where he could encounter something that could present a threat to him.

And this new entity had appeared _right_ in the middle of it all.

But, even as he breathed out a sigh of discontent, the man still rose from his seat. He was known as a great many things, at least half of them courtesy of the Vice Director herself and less than flattering, but never let it be said he was lax in his responsibilities.

…..Well, _most_ of the time. Either way, this current oddity was something too potentially significant to ignore. Not to mention far too _interesting_ for him to simply let it go unattended.

After all, life was full of surprises. And he had a feeling that this was going to be a _BIG_ one.

So, with merely a thought and a twirl of his gemstone studded cane, he crossed the thousands of miles away from his home in London to the source of the disturbance. And as he appeared, he was made witness to a city in flames.

oOoOoOoOo Eric oOoOoOoOo

It was burning. Scorching. _Searing_ in a way that immolated him down to his very soul. It honestly felt like he'd woken up in Hell.

Eric wasn't even sure how he got up, but he was on his feet and moving before he even noticed the world moving around him. Hearing the collapsing of buildings as their supports ere devoured by flames, the screams of the dying and lost, hearing the hellish crackling of the fires around him as it ate away at the world.

He felt his feet seem to crisp slightly as he ran away, barely noticing as he rushed over hot coals in his scramble to escape. It was so hot that he couldn't even sweat, it seemed to get turned to steam the moment it appeared on his skin. He could even swear he was feeling his skin crackle slightly from the heat.

And then there was all the screaming. There was no doubt he wasn't alone here in this inferno, he'd heard dozens of screaming voices around him. Mothers crying for dying children, children calling for their dead parents, screams of fear and agony as flames closed in and burned people alive.

He had no doubt that, wherever he may be, it was the very picture of Hell on Earth.

' _WHERE THE HELL DID I GET DROPPED OFF?!_ '

But he didn't have time to think about that right now, not if he wanted to get out of here and survive. He had to escape, had to get out of the inferno. But he seemed to get weaker with every step. The heat bearing down on him like a physical force, the smoke all but blinding him and burning his throat with every breath as it was caked with the ash.

He could barely navigate through the hellish landscape, the flames and rubble seeming to keep appearing in front of him everywhere he seemed to go. The panic in him slowly continued to build as it became clearer and clearer that he wouldn't be able to escape, that he'd be burned alive here and his body would be reduced to just so many ashes.

He was going to die. He was really going to die here in this scorching gate to hell. He may as well have never woken up from that empty void.

As that realization sank in, all his desperate strength seemed to simply leave his body. His limbs became heavy as pieces of metal and he fell to the hot ground. He belatedly realized that it seemed a little clearer down at the earth, probably because the smoke was all up above ground level.

There was the sound of another building collapsing somewhere and a man shouting something in the distance. He would've hoped the man could find him in time, but he didn't see any point in it. The fire was too close for someone to arrive in time and getting closer still. He'd be burned to death in just a few minutes.

As his heavy eyelids closed down and his vision went black, the last thing he saw just had to be a hallucination. How else could the fires around him have disappeared and revealed the feet of some unknown man?

oOoOoOoOo Kischur Zelretch Schweinorg oOoOoOoOo

"Well well, what have we here?"

Let it be known that Zelretch, master of the Second True Magic, Wizard Marshall of the Clock Tower, and _many_ more things, was a very _old_ man. He'd been around the block more than his fair share of times, seen plenty of odd and notable things (usually while kicking their asses in a suitably awesome manner), met a great deal of interesting people (also likely while impressing upon them his magnificence), and still had quite a few more interesting encounters besides.

But this was definitely the first time he'd encountered someone not of this world.

…Well, that wasn't entirely accurate. He _had_ encountered something not of this world, followed by immediately killing it to save this little speck of cosmic dirt, but this was something different. This boy wasn't just from a different planet, he was from a different dimension _entirely_. He could honestly say he'd never encountered a situation quite like this before.

And that's what made it so _interesting_.

Bending down slightly for a better look, Zelretch gave the object of his attention a once over. A boy, probably 11 years old or so with light brown hair. His was dressed in a white t-shirt with slacks and lacking any shoes, his exposed skin covered in soot, scratches and more than a few light burns from proximity to the fire.

His feet had it the worst, burned and cracking from the heat as blood leaked from the injuries. It honestly looked like some of the skin from the bottom of his feet had melted off. It was a small miracle he'd been walking at all.

His eyes briefly darted to the back of his right hand. Did he see a slight glow on it? Must've been his imagination.

He clicked his tongue a few times, still looking down. "But what to _do_ with you?"

He honestly hadn't expected something like this when he'd set out. Zelretch had thought it was probably some paranormal entity or potential threat, not just some boy who crashed through the barriers of dimensions and arrived here. He had come here expecting a fight, not….. _this_.

Fortunately, the old Vampire happened to be rather good at dealing with surprises. How could he not be after living with the shock of being turned into a Dead Apostle? And it had been centuries since that particular incident.

He took barely a moment to make the surrounding ash and dirt disappear before he knelt down and put a hand on the boy. Channeling some prana, the Wizard Marshall put some healing Magecraft to use and worked to repair the damage. Extracting the ash in his throat and lungs, healing the scratches and burns, even repairing his feet to the point where they looked good as new.

But he was barely paying attention to the process, his interest was more focused on what he'd noticed internally of the boy's body.

Magic Circuits. Quite a few of them, too. He'd encountered a fair few Magi with 30 natural Magic Circuits, but never someone completely unaffiliated with the supernatural world. Not to mention they were of rather high quality, significantly higher than the average Mage.

' _And they're abnormal,_ ' he thought. ' _They don't feel natural, more like they were...implanted, somehow._ '

Could his travel through the dimensional boundaries have done something to his body? Activated or altered his Magic Circuits? Or maybe artificially created them inside his own body? That was something Zelretch could honestly say he didn't have an answer for. Quite the rarity.

"Just who are you, boy?"

He gained no answer from the target of his curiosity, tired and unconscious on the ground as he was. The small fry probably didn't even know what was happening around him right now.

Regardless, Zelretch was starting to be quite happy with his arrival. It looked like he'd found something interesting after all.

It was just too bad Zelretch had the unfortunate tendency of driving the subjects of such interest crazy. ' _Ah well, maybe this one will be lucky._ '

oOoOoOoOo Eric oOoOoOoOo

' _Since when did the ground ever feel soft?_ ' Eric thought absently. ' _Grass? No, how could there have been grass in a place like-_ '

His upper body catapulted up with a jolt as the memories came back to him; screams, fire, heat, death, _dying_!

It took him a few minutes of shaking and hugging his own legs to his body before he realized he wasn't standing in that searing inferno. There wasn't any consuming fire around him and he wasn't in the middle of a burning city or lying on the hard ground of a street.

Instead, he was in a bed, and a very _comfortable_ one at that. Not just that, but he was apparently in some room. Certainly not one he'd recognized, given the lavish furniture and accommodations. A great Persian rug covered the whole floor, great emblems and patterns so clear that it looked practically new. There was also a few pieces of quality furniture, including a couch with a low coffee table and a couple of nice chairs. He vaguely noted that they were all of rather high quality leather, but that wasn't what stood out the most to him.

' _I didn't even know furniture COULD have gold trim._ '

No joke, quite a bit of the furniture actually had some gold trim or highlights. And not just gold, he also saw some _gems_ encrusted in small tables or a nearby lamp. Just one of these pieces of furniture could probably be sold for enough to buy a decent house, to say nothing of everything in the whole room.

But it still went a long way towards making two things very clear. One was that whoever owned this place was loaded beyond his wildest dreams. Second was…well…. ' _Toto, we're not in Kansas anymore._ '

He'd actually lived in California, but the point still remained untarnished.

Carefully slipping out of the bed, he couldn't help but notice that something felt very _off_ with his body. Maybe it was because of the fire? That made sense, it was probably still recovering.

Walking around the room for a minute, he was surprised to note that the furniture was significantly larger than he'd thought. As if made for somebody with gigantism? It was certainly big enough for someone like that.

He quickly spotted the door and headed to open it, only to be interrupted as the knob turned and someone else pushed it in before he reached it. The man who walked in was tall and obviously old, his hair and goatee all carrying the deep grey of old age, slight wrinkles visible across his face.

But, despite all those signs of age, he still moved with a crispness that implied a great deal of vitality and physical capability. He was pretty sure this old man wouldn't spend the rest of his life in a wheelchair.

' _But why does he seem so familiar?_ '

Really, something about the old man just looked so familiar to him. The outfit, the hair, the general appearance. But no matter how hard he tried, he just couldn't place it.

"Ah, so you've woken up." The old man smiled down at him. "That's good. I was starting to wonder if I'd just brought you here for nothing, little boy."

His eyebrow twitched. _Little boy_? What was that about? He hadn't been called that since….wait a minute.

Eyes widening in dawning horror, he darted around the room to find something with a decently reflective surface. Lacking a mirror, he was forced to use the reflective metals of a nearby lamp to check. Looking at the face staring back at him, his worst fear had just been confirmed.

"I'M A FUCKING KID!"

He was vaguely aware of the old man's booming laughter in the background, shoved into the back of his mind as his thought were thrown into a panicked frenzy at the discovery. He was focused on something _much_ more important.

 _The fact that he was a kid again!_

Seriously, how did it happen? He was pretty sure it's impossible for something to age backwards. It was biologically impossible.

…..Well, except for the rather aptly nicknamed Immortal Jellyfish, but that wasn't really important right now. What was important was that he was a damned _kid_ again!

He _really_ wasn't looking forward to growing up all over again. People always talked about how _wonderful_ it would be to relive their childhood days, how _marvelous_ it would be to go through those days of childish innocence again.

In his humble, albeit somewhat biased opinion, that was an absolute load of _tripe_. The only people who considered that kind of thing nostalgic were the ones too old to remember what it was actually _like_ as a kid. Too young to matter, too young to do anything, too young for anyone to even take you seriously at all.

Not to mention the more _physical_ benefits of somewhat older age. Like being able to own and drive a car, to legally possess a credit card or debit card, or make other purchases on things solely meant for the age of maturity. And let's not even get _started_ on just how physically _weak_ someone is at such early years of their life. He was practically _helpless_ in a body like this.

And dear _LORD_ , it was gonna be hell going through puberty all over again. Not to mention needing to repeat school.

' _Okay, so you know the bad stuff. Let's see if you can think of the things that DON'T make this horrible._ '

Let's see…..Oh, he wasn't a baby! That was a surprisingly big one when you thought about it. He didn't even want to _think_ of stumbling around in a damn diaper. _Especially_ if his baby body lacked the physical control to keep from shitting itself. Then there was also the _insufferable_ baby talk, along with the crib and the little toys and nobody taking him seriously.

Granted, they wouldn't take a 10 year old much more seriously, but at least he could actually _speak_.

He nodded his head. ' _Okay, maybe this won't be TOO horrible._ ' Granted, it wasn't perfect, but it could definitely be worse.

"My, such _language_ from such a little boy." He didn't even need to turn around to know the old man was smiling. "What would your parents think, I wonder?"

He flinched slightly at that, struck silent. ' _My parents._ '

….Well, at least he wouldn't need to worry about them worrying themselves to death over him. They were already too dead for that.

It was kinda funny in some ways. When you're a kid you honestly seem to think you'll have your parents around forever, a notion that doesn't entirely disappear even after you actually grow up a bit and understand that people can really die.

So it always seems to catch you by surprise when you hear they just died from something like a car crash.

It had happened a few years ago, but that didn't make it hurt any less.

Eric's brief bout of depression was cut a bit short when he felt a hand suddenly rest on his shoulder. Turning his head, he looked straight into the red eyes of the first person he'd seen since he woke up.

"Bad choice of words?" he questioned, his face and tone absent of any of the humor from before.

"Yeah," he admitted, voice flat. He knew it wasn't the old man's fault, he had no idea about what had happened, but it still hurt a bit.

….Well, they said time healed all wounds didn't they? This at least gave him some more time, if nothing else.

But that still left a certain question unanswered.

"Where am I?"

The man's face took a notably less serious look at his question, apparently getting some of his good humor back. "You're in London right now. More specifically, you're in the Clock Tower."

He narrowed his eyes at the man's wording. Why did he decide to specifically mention the Clock Tower? Were they in Big Ben or something? _That_ Clock Tower?

Looking around, he decided on a definite no. He was pretty sure the Clock Tower of London wasn't a residential area for anybody, regardless of how rich. So what else could he be talking about?

"Don't suppose you'll give me any more details?"

He regretted the words barely a second later as the elderly man's smile gained a predatory look. "Nope. That's all you get."

' _Something tells me I'm gonna learn to be terrified of that smile._ '

Regardless, it looked like he'd have to find out more on his own. This guy might have apparently saved him, but that looked like it was all he was gonna do for now.

Looking around the room, he gave the furniture a closer look to see if he could find any clues. Any kind of marking or indication of where he was would be appreciated. Especially if he could find some kind of window to see the outside.

Unfortunately, it quickly became clear that there was neither a window to see through nor some kind or indication of where he was. The furniture all looked Western in configuration, but that really wasn't saying much. He could be on the other side of the world for all he knew.

Frustrated at the lack of results, he turned to look at the old man again with an angry glower. " _No_ hints?"

His glower intensified as the elder flashed him another smile. "Take a look in the drawer of the bedside table."

And his glower immediately disappeared. The bedside table drawer? Did the old man _really_ just give him a suggestion? The suspicious look returned for a moment. "What happened to no hints?"

"You were taking too long," the man replied. "I can't spend _all_ my time watching you stumble around in this little room. Business before entertainment and all that."

He almost didn't notice his hands clenching at that. Seriously, _entertainment_? This guy considered someone stumbling around looking for clues about his whereabouts to be funny? Talk about a sick sense of humor.

He had the chilling notion that he was gonna be very familiar with this man's particular brand of humor, but did his best to shove it into the back of his mind. No point getting paranoid about it.

Still, he made sure to keep an eye on the old man as he moved to the indicated table. The geezer might not have tried anything yet, but Eric had the distinct impression that he shouldn't let his guard down around him. Those instincts had never served him wrong before, so he was pretty sure they wouldn't fail him now.

Slowly making his way over, he reached out a hand and opened the drawer to check the contents inside. Taking his eyes off the strange old man for a moment, he briefly flicked his vision over to the opened drawer to see what could be inside. Followed by his brows drawing together slightly in confusion.

"A book?"

"Give it a gander," the geezer encouraged, that same smile still on his face. "I'm sure you'll find the material quite interesting."

' _Just open up and read a book while this guy is watching me in the same room?_ ' Not exactly a very encouraging mental image, all things considered. He didn't _seem_ like he was gonna try anything, but Eric couldn't help but note that the caution sense in the back of his head was still screaming ' _RED ALERT!_ '

Unfortunately, there really wasn't any better option. He had no idea where he was in the world and there weren't any other potential leads in this room. No marks or signs or anything. Even the Persian Rug wasn't much of a hint, given those things tended to be valuable commodities to anyone with money, it just showed this guy in front of him was loaded. And that was a message the rest of the furniture already made pretty damn clear.

With a sigh of resignation, Eric reached into the drawer and retrieved the book in question. Well, calling it a booklet would probably have been generous, it looked like more of a small guide of some kind. The title though…..

 **[The Clock Tower – Grand Institution of Thaumaturgy]**

' _The Clock Tower?_ ' Eric questioned mentally. ' _Thaumaturgy? Why does that sound-_ '

….Oh God no.

Furiously flipping through the booklet, Eric looked over everything written down, poured over every word to find something to prove this as all a prank or just some fevered dream. He vaguely recalled that a rumor that reading was impossible in dreams, but he was too panicked to really care right now.

And the information in the booklet _really_ wasn't helping. Hell, it actually seemed to be making his panic even _worse_. Why? _Because it was so fucking ACCURATE_!

It had the history of the organization in question, the names of every prominent member and founder, information on the departments and their focuses, _everything_!

He went through it several times, looking for anything that could hint at this all being an elaborate prank or joke. He even started laughing at some point, practically delirious at the whole damned thing. And all the while he tried to convince himself that this wasn't real. That it _couldn't_ be real!

But he didn't wake up from the dream. Nobody walked out of somewhere to say "We got you good!" Nothing.

And _that_ was when he remembered something else. Something that happened to be very important, in fact. Something he _missed_ before, but not this time as he took another look at the old man by the door.

"Who are you?" he asked, the words coming out like a desperate croaking sound.

The old man….the _Mage_ , smiled at him and took a flourishing bow. "I am Kischur Zelretch Schweinorg, Wizard Marshall, Old Man of the Jewels, Zelretch of the Jewels, and occasionally referred to as the Kaleidoscope or 'The Wizard That Did It'."

He turned his face up to flash him a wink. "The last one is my favorite."

It took all of Eric's willpower to keep himself from fainting. Because now, beyond any shadow of a doubt, he knew that this had to be real. This man was really the most powerful Mage alive in the Nasuverse, the man who took down _Crimson Moon_!

 _And he was really in the Nasuverse_! Screw not in Kansas anymore, he _literally_ wasn't on the same fucking _PLANET_!

He couldn't help what happened next as his hands grasped his head and his expression turned up to the ceiling.

"I'M FUCKED!"

oOoOoOoOo Kischur Zelretch Schweinorg oOoOoOoOo

' _Maybe I was wrong about how much fun he'd be._ '

Really, all the lad seemed to do now was keep himself locked inside the room Zelretch had so generously granted him. It was admittedly understandable, given that the young man had just found out he had been transported to a whole new world, but still a bit disappointing. Hopefully the boy would get over it soon enough and start acting more _fun_.

He knew he was probably being rather harsh, but overcoming difficulties and adversity was a part of Human nature, a part that he wholeheartedly supported. The will to overcome and rise above, the determination to come out on top regardless of any obstacle, the desperation to keep going no matter what you did or who you had to beat.

After all, it was that very quality that pushed Zelretch himself to stand against Crimson Moon and come out the victor. He paid a price for it, both with body and Magic, but he considered it worth it. And it was a fight he'd do again in a heartbeat if necessary.

He could only hope the boy would overcome his own trial here, that fear and shock that was holding him back. He'd seemed so promising before, a visitor from across dimensions with a rather sizeable number of high quality Magic Circuits. With time and teaching the boy could become something _GRAND_ , he just knew it.

But he couldn't do anything while his fear worked as an invisible shackle, keeping him in that room.

With a sigh leaving his lips, the Wizard Marshall poured himself some coffee and kicked back in his comfy chair once more, turning on some viewing portals to watch the comings and goings of the Clock Tower and see if he could spot anything interesting.

Unfortunately, it seemed today was going to be another slow day. He caught sight of a young student using some basic Magecraft to set up a prank on a teacher, but not much more. Beyond that brief shot of amusement there wasn't really much else.

' _Oh come on,_ ' he mentally whined. ' _Won't someone do SOMETHING? Throw a goddamn water balloon full of paint, make clothes disappear, I'd even take a damn whoopee cushion!_ '

But the world didn't respond to his silent plea, sticking to the calm and uniformity as if to spite him.

He groaned in despair, his gaze momentarily shifting over to the closed door to the room that was now occupied.

He _really_ hoped the boy snapped out of it sometime soon.

oOoOoOoOo Eric oOoOoOoOo

The former 20 year old and current child who happened to be the subject of Zelretch's thoughts was currently lying under the covers of the bed, inhabiting a noticeable crater in the mattress beneath him.

It had been two days since he'd suddenly woken up in this room by now. Two days since he'd found out he'd been transported into the Nasuverse. Two days since he'd discovered he'd woken up in the Clock Tower. _Two days since he'd met Zelretch face to face_!

Seriously, that last one was big enough to deserve the extra emphasis. Zelretch was a _big_ deal. You don't exactly get to punch out an abomination from outer space and not be a big deal.

But that revelation didn't exactly do much for him right now. Not for the situation he'd found himself in, that was for sure.

In a dark way, the whole situation as actually kinda funny. He'd heard about stuff like this before, he even remembered reading _fanfictions_ about it. Some guy from the _real world_ ended up getting transported into some fictional work and, put simply, shit happened.

More often than not it was pretty damn fun to read, at least as long as it was done right. But it got a little annoying when they just devolved into something for wish fulfillment. When it made things look _easy_.

But waking up in a whole new world, especially a _dangerous_ one? It wasn't easy, it was _terrifying_!

And his own particular situation made it even worse, considering he got dropped into a particularly dangerous world while stuck in the body of a helpless, ten year old kid. And that was only his _physical_ circumstances.

The thought that you've woken up in a world with nobody you know? Knowing you've unintentionally left behind everything and _everybody_ that even meant something to you? Wondering about how they might react to finding out you've disappeared?

…Well, at least in his case, they'd have a body to bury. Unless the corpse he left behind just disintegrated or ended up getting dragged here and being healed into this new body of his. He honestly hoped neither of those possibilities was the case, it would be nice at least for his friends to have a corpse to bury. Something to get some closure over.

And that was saying nothing about the world you may have been transported into. There was a little saying he remembered hearing somewhere: There's no such thing as a safe anime. That might sound a little cynical, but it was true.

Hell, plenty of anime that looked kid friendly were actually pretty damn scary when you took away all the sugar and rainbows. Naruto was a series about child soldiers being trained to kill in a perpetual Cold War. Dragon Ball Z was about fights between heroes and enemies that could casually destroy whole _planets_ (not to mention the villains actually seemed to do that quite often).

Point being: those worlds tended to be _very_ dangerous. And here he was, dropped straight into a world that was probably among the _worst_.

A world of horrifying monsters like the Dead Apostles, constantly circled by the Types, Magi that were distant at best and psychopathic at worst, and _plenty_ of other scary shit caught in-between.

In retrospect, could anyone really blame him for being scared? Hell, being turned into a kid was _peanuts_ compared to being dropped off here. Especially in this particular place. The Clock Tower was essentially the headquarters of the Magi, with all the best and worst of them being concentrated here in an eternal combination of research and political backstabbing.

And they'd probably _love_ to get their hands on him.

Seriously, it wasn't exactly every day that someone from another world suddenly dropped by. _Especially_ if the visitor was from another dimension. _Doubly so_ if they also happened to be from a dimension where your world existed as various forms of media entertainment. He wasn't sure what they'd do and he wasn't sure he even _wanted_ to know, but he knew it wouldn't be good.

And it looked like he was stuck here. Zelretch might be able to get him back home, he probably even already knew about his particularly weird situation, but Eric wouldn't exactly put money on it. If the whole Multiverse idea was real (and he was pretty sure by this point that it was) then it would take honestly _impossible_ luck for Zelretch to actually stumble onto it.

So what could he really do? Would he just stay here in this room, feeling helpless until he died? Was that his only option?

...No. It wasn't his only option. There was _always_ a different option. The real question was, 'Can I pull it off?'

Because even if he _was_ unceremoniously dropped off in this world, the process that made it happen game him an advantage he didn't have. Magic Circuits, the pseudo-spiritual system of the body that allowed the user to actualize Thaumaturgy. Not much, not right away, but it was _something_. It was a _start_.

And he woke up in the Clock Tower. Apparently because _Zelretch_ had seen something interesting about him.

Attaching himself to Zelretch _might_ keep him safe for a while, but that wouldn't be enough on its own. Just a way to buy time. And he was pretty sure he didn't want to rely on anyone's good graces forever like some kind of leech. Besides, there were _some_ entities in the world even Zelretch wouldn't be able to protect him from.

He absently thought back to something the Wizard Marshall had told him before, back when he'd still been almost hysterical and asked the man why he'd brought him here.

"I thought it might be interesting to keep you around. Your body didn't come out of the transition unchanged."

That meant the old vampire knew. If he knew that, in addition to his other circumstances, then he must have had a reason for bringing him back here. And knowing that old man, there was one particular reason that stood out.

Looking at his hands, he gave them a brief clench before relaxing them. It was a little odd. He could somehow _sense_ the Magic Circuits in his body, but he didn't really _feel_ any different. Then again, he also remembered that Magic Circuits weren't an entirely physical thing in the body.

So the question remained. Could he pull this off? Could he survive here?

Pushing the covers off, Eric took a long look at the room around him, letting everything sink in. Every measurement, every piece of furniture, every piece of metal and wood. Letting the reality all sink in, he realized that if he _didn't_ do something, then this little room would be the extent of his whole world. His whole _life_ here.

 _'...Yeah. That's DEFINITELY not the kind of life I want._ '

His mind made up and an objective set, he maneuvered his body until his legs were over the side of the bed and he slid off. He stumbled slightly as he landed, barely keeping his balance as he put weight on his legs. Guess not using your legs much for two days straight could do that to you. Go figure.

So on slightly wobbly legs (only slightly, stop snickering at the image) he walked to the door, ready to take his first step to making his new life in this new world.

Followed by his serious mood shattering as he saw the most powerful Mage in the world pouting like a child who'd had his favorite toy confiscated as he looked into some weird window in space. "Oh come _ON_! Somebody at least throw a damn _PIE_! _I WANT TO SEE A FOOD FIGHT_!"

…Maaaaybe this guy wasn't his best bet after all.

oOoOoOoOo Kischur Zelretch Schweinorg oOoOoOoOo

"Seriously," the most powerful living Mage grumbled, his disappointment all but a physical presence in the air. "Can't _someone_ do _something_? What does an old man have to do for some entertainment?"

And thus, with a dimmed enthusiasm, the Wizard Marshall leaned back into his chair with a sigh of resignation. He imagined he looked the exact opposite of the dignified persona he often projected in front of others, looking like a pouting child. He couldn't really bring himself to care about it, and it wasn't like anybody could really see him right now.

….Well, except for one in particular. "I know you're there. You can come out now."

It almost brought a smile to his face as he heard the boy physically start. Getting a nervous reaction out of people wasn't exactly high on his list of favorite pastimes, but it could still be a little satisfying.

Deciding to milk the situation for all it's worth, he steeped his fingers in front of his face, his elbows on the armrests of his dear chair, and slowly swiveled it around to face the young man who'd FINALLY come out of that room.

He'd practiced this very act many times to get it just right. That intimidating scene as he swiveled around and looked someone in the eye with his crimson orbs. He'd even arranged to have some select crystals in the room light up behind him as he stared the boy down, casting ominous shadows as his eyes seemed to _glow_. Fingers steeped in front of his face and looking for all the world like some kind of diabolical mastermind.

Which he _kinda_ was, if you looked at things from the proper angle. He was an extremely important member of a secret society that spread across the whole world, he had almost complete access to the organization's resources and personnel at his fingertips, and _plenty_ of people in the Clock Tower treaded lightly around him like their lives depended on it.

It was actually their sanity that they had to worry about, but that was besides the point.

Which made it a little surprising when the mere boy in front of him didn't seem intimidated. He just seemed to…stare at him for a moment with a rather flat look on his face. It only lasted for a moment before the boy sighed and shook his head at him, a small but noticeable smile on his face.

"You ripped that out of a James Bond movie, didn't you?"

The Wizard Marshall blinked slightly at that before his face morphed into a chiding glare.

Yeah, a glare. He most certainly _wasn't_ pouting at the unfortunate failure of the maneuver he'd spent _months_ practicing. Don't judge! He was a damned _VAMPIRE_! Who was really going to say he was wasting time?

Seeming to deflate as he let out another sigh, Zelretch looked at the boy with a light glower. "Damn, you just _had_ to ruin the moment. Do you have _any_ idea how long I've worked on that?"

He brought a hand up to his face and faked a sniffle. "And to think it can't even work on some little boy. What's this world coming to? Oh _boohoo_."

He could hear a snort as the boy began his retort. "Isn't it obvious why it didn't work?"

Ooh, a fellow joker? Zelretch pulled off the hand he was holding over his face, looking at the lad who had _dared_ to snark back. "Oh? Then tell me, dear brat, what's the secret I'm missing?"

The boy didn't disappoint.

"You don't have a cat with you," he retorted, tone flat as the business end of a hammer. "All diabolical masterminds need a cat, it's the secret to their intimidation." He gestured to the room around him. "You also don't have a damned _shark tank_! Or laser turrets! Or sharks with _lasers on their heads_!"

The boy shook his head, making a tsk'ing sound of disapproval. "So much wasted potential. They should really make a manual."

"Good advice," the Dead Apostle agreed. "I'll have to take that into consideration. And a manual might not be a bad idea. Imagine the potential! You're onto something big."

They took a moment to share a laugh at that, the atmosphere lighting up a little with some real humor. He'd honestly been worried if he'd be able to get any laughs at all today.

But eventually the laughter dimmed to chuckles and the room was quiet again, though with a much nicer atmosphere this time. "Well, this was fun. But I take it you didn't just come out to play Bond Villain with me. What's on your mind?"

oOoOoOoOo Eric oOoOoOoOo

' _What's on my mind, huh?_ ' Well, wasn't _that_ the question of the day. Put simply, his mind was kicking into overdrive right now to try and find a way to get what he needed to survive. The only way available that he could see was to become a Mage.

….Actually, screw that. He didn't just need to become a Mage, he needed to become a _powerful_ Mage. And Zelretch was probably his best bet.

But the question was whether or not the vampiric geezer would actually do so. He knew from canon that the old man was very unpredictable and prone to following his whims, so it was possible. The guy had even brought him here from that hellish shell of a city and saved his life. He was pretty sure that wouldn't have happened if the old man hadn't found something in him that was worth his time.

He was just about to answer when the Big Z spoke for him.

"It has to do with you suddenly being dropped into this new world, doesn't it?"

Eric froze in place as the words registered. He was almost surprised that the old man could read him like that, but not by all that much. Zelretch was plenty of things, but stupid was _definitely_ not one of them. Not by a long shot.

He let out an awkward chuckle. "Is it really that obvious?"

The big man didn't even offer a response, just staring at him with those crimson eyes. ' _Why am I suddenly hoping he isn't thirsty?_ '

Shaking the thought out of his head, Eric pressed forward. Nervously clearing his throat, he looked into those red eyes and spoke. "You already know about what happened to my body when I came here, right? Besides…." he took a moment to gesture over his own body. His very _new_ and _small_ body. "Besides this?"

The Wizard Marshall nodded at him. "Yes, your body somehow developed Magic Circuits during its journey here. Though I must admit I'm not entirely sure how."

He almost pulled back when Zelretch flashed him a smirk with a decidedly _predatory_ edge. ' _He's not gonna eat me, he's not gonna eat me, he's not gonna eat me, he's NOT GONNA EAT ME._ '

"I must admit, such a rare occurence pas perked my interest. Most people might consider such a thing dangerous, but you? Well, for you, it's your only hope of surviving here."

Eric was under the distinct impression that the old nut in front of him was quite enjoying being the predator in this conversation. Zelretch might be a prankster, he as even on the side of humanity, but that didn't exactly mean he was above enjoying his position as one of the people at the _very_ top.

And that was without including his sense of humor. The old Dead Apostle _lived_ for messing with people, of course he'd find messing with him and making him jump to be enjoyable.

But Eric wasn't really in the mood to play that little game right now. Taking a deep breath and letting it out in a slow sigh, he did his best to let the tension leave his body along with the breath.

It didn't work as well as he'd hoped, but at least he could bring himself to talk again. Something he put to use as he looked the most powerful living Magus in the eye. "Yeah, guess there's not much point in dragging this out, huh?"

Zelretch shrugged at that, but he didn't answer. It really wasn't all that surprising. The old man was the single most powerful Mage still alive, by a _wide_ margin, and he knew about the truth of Eric's situation. He knew that Eric had Magic Ciruits, that they were the only real weapon he had that would allow him to survive in this world, and he also knew that Eric wasn't from _this_ universe.

And _that_ made him interesting to the old man. He was just about to speak when-

"Would you like to go back?"

Eric froze in place with his mouth open, words forgotten. ' _Did he really just say-_ '

"Did I really just say that?" the old vampire questioned, an infuriating smile on his face. "Yes, I did. I'm offering you a chance to go back home. It might take me some time to find it, but it's possible. I could send you back home if you'd only ask me." He rose up from his seat, his tall and imposing frame reaching its full height, the small cape of his coat flowing as he walked towards him. "Don't get me wrong, I'm _quite_ eager to see what you could do here." He stopped walking, standing barely a foo in front of Eric and towering over him, his height and sheer presence seeming to make him bigger than life itself. "But, as much as I'm sure some of my...unfortunate acquaintances in the Clock Tower might say otherwise, I don't consider myself a cruel man. Devilishly humorous? Definitely. But withholding from you that I could very well send you home? Hiding that from you _solely_ so I could derive some amusement? Well, _that_ would most certainly be rather cruel. Not funny at all." His expression shifted ever so slightly, as if implying a grimace. "Certainly not _my_ kind of funny."

' _Go back?_ '

…..It was tempting. _Very_ tempting to just say yes and go home. He almost said it, but…..

"No," he answered. "At least….not right now."

If Zelretch was surprised then he sure didn't show it. He probably had a great poker face. "Can I ask why?"

Eric grimaced. "It's just…..as much as I _want_ to, I know it won't really be the same." He held up a hand, looking it over and noticing every difference from the one he recognized. The skin was a slightly more pale tone, and it didn't have that scar on the base of his pinky that he got in Highschool Wood Shop. He remembered looking at his reflection a once when he went to the bathroom. His first thought had almost been ' _Who's that?_ '

Kinda depressing if you think about it. He just…..

"I'm just not that Eric anymore," he whispered, not even noticing as Zelretch's face slightly in response to his words and the meaning in them. "I'm too young, not to mention I don't look anything like I used to. What would really happen if I went back there?"

He felt the slightly pained smile form on his face. "Eric is already dead back home, that's the story and there's a corpse to back it up. I doubt any of my old friends will respond well to me walking up and saying "It's me guys, I'm back from the dead". There's no way they'd believe me."

He stopped talking for a moment and silence enveloped the room, working up the nerve to keep talking. "It just wouldn't work. They're probably already trying to move on and….I doubt me just popping up again would really help. I don't really have any family left, either, so where would I have to go? An orphanage? I just….I really can't see me going back there actually fixing anything. Not like this."

He sighed, letting all the tension leave him. It wasn't nice, but it wasn't any less true. "Eric from back home is dead. Maybe I could go back and visit, see how my friends are doing, but…..not for a while."

"So you'll be staying here?"

Eric smiled at the question, particularly the tone behind it. It almost sounded….amused? Something like that. "Looks like it." He turned his eyes back up to the man in front of him, determination setting back in. "And that's why I wanted to talk with you. But I'm pretty sure you already know what it's about."

Zelretch smiled at him again, this time without the predatory edge. If anything, the old man actually seemed overjoyed. "Indeed I do," he answered,hunching down slightly to rest a hand upon Eric's head, patting his scalp like some kind of proud parent before pulling it back. "And I accept. From now on, you'll be my apprentice." A hint of mischief entered his eyes as he said that. "Just try not to fall apart like all the others, good apprentices are _so_ hard to find. I want you to at least survive a full year."

He scoffed at that. "Screw a year, you're stuck with me for the full damn term."

The Wizard Marshall's smile took on a hint of challenge at that. "Oh? Bold words, my dear boy, _very_ bold. Let's see if you can back it up." Clearing his throat for a moment, the elderly vampire seemed to ponder something over. "By the way, what should we do about your name?"

' _My name?_ ' "What's wrong with Eric?"

"Nothing, nothing at all," he answered, flicking his wrist like some sign of dismissal. "But what about the rest. _Just_ Eric won't be enough of an identity for you to live here."

That was…..actually a good point. What _should_ the rest of his name be? He couldn't use the rest of his old name, not when he had to leave that behind. "Good point but…..I'm drawing a bit of a blank. Any ideas?"

He realized a little too late that letting the Multiverse's biggest troll decide on you name might not be the best idea. A revelation that he only realized as the man smirked down on him like the Devil offering a contract.

Which meant he was all the more surprised when the old man actually game up with something that actually _didn't_ sound crazy. Hell, that the old joker gave him a name that could even be _useful_.

"Eric Maxwell Schweinorg," he said, his tone oddly serious. "That will be your new name here. I trust it's satisfactory?"

Satisfactory? It was probably more than just satisfactory, it actually sounded pretty awesome! He said it a few times, letting it roll off the tongue to get a feel for it.

Yeah, he could get used to a name like that. But the Schweinorg part…..

"You _do_ know how much attention I'll get from having your family name, right?" Seriously, he might as well be painting a target on the back of his head. People might not move overtly against him, but there was always gonna be some idiot that wanted to impress everyone.

"Oh, don't worry about that," the old man dismissed with a wave of his hand. "You can just introduce yourself as Eric Maxwell to most. It shouldn't turn too many heads."

Oh. Fair enough, that sounded like it could work. "As long as I don't have to call you Papa. You're _way_ too old for that."

"Oh," the Dead Apostle whined, a hand over his heart. "My boy, how you wound me. Just for that I'll make your training _especially_ entertaining."

And Eric most certainly _didn't_ feel a chill go down his spine at that. Nope. Not at all.

Trying to distract himself from thinking on what the crazy super-senior had in mind, he decided to voice a question. "Why Maxwell?"

He instantly went on guard when the geezer actually looked serious. He was pretty sure a _serious_ Zelretch was a very _dangerous_ Zelretch. The notion didn't waver as the man seemed to stare off into the distance.

"It's a name very dear to my heart. One that I will treasure always, in tribute to my greatest companion."

…Oh. Wow, now he was actually feeling kinda honored-

"He was such a _WONDERFUL_ doggie!"

And just like that, the moment was over. Zelretch's face back to its mischievous look and Eric looking at him with a flat expression and a searing glare.

' _I really should've kept my mouth shut._ '

 **xXx**

Yo! To those of you who are reading this because the notification popped up and you decided to give it a try, thank you for your support. I greatly appreciate it. To all others who skimmed this fic's description and decided to give it a try, a big thanks to all of you for deciding to give it a try.

First off, I want to say that you probably shouldn't expect updates for this fic to be very frequent. I've got other fics that I also want to give fair time to and I'm honestly considering of putting some of my other ideas out on the site. For those of you who are reading this as the first of my fics you've experienced, thank you for giving it a try and feel free to peruse some of my others on my profile.

For those who are curious, the next fic I'll work on is The Will To Power, followed by World of Remnant: Online. I'll then try to put more chapters out for A Scorpion's Successor.

Review and have a nice day!


	2. Exposition Time!

Chapter 2

 **Exposition Time!**

xXx

oOoOoOoOo Eric oOoOoOoOo

One must always expect the unexpected in regards to Zelretch. That was a simple truth known to any fan of the Nasuverse who was even vaguely aware of the single greatest troll of the whole series. A man who delighted is breaking the norm and reducing all order before him to chaos and sitting back to watch it unfold.

That said, being _told_ to expect the unexpected and being _able_ to expect the unexpected are two very different things. Often the only difference at all was the hindsight of realizing you _should've_ expected whatever happened, considering the question of just _how_ someone could expect something that was…well, unexpected.

Thus was Eric's conundrum when he woke up that morning for his first day as the apprentice of the Big Z himself. He could honestly say he expected _something_ to happen, it was practically a requirement.

But he sure didn't expect Zelretch to wake him up at the crack of dawn with a megaphone.

 **WAKE UP, SLEEPYHEAD! THE EARLY MAGUS GET'S THE GRIMOIRE! RISE AND SHINE!"**

So you could imagine that it was perfectly feasible for Eric to roll and scramble out of bed in a panic, screaming in shock and doing his best to avoid dying from a sudden heart attack. Pushing and escaping from the confines of his bed, he tumbled out in a panic as he was in the middle of a particularly panicked shout. He was damn lucky he didn't land head first and get a concussion.

Panting rapidly, fearing that the noise was a prelude to some kind of attack in the old and instinctive part of his mind, he slowly regained his composure as he realized that, no, there wasn't going to be some kind of attack.

Instead he got up and shouted "What the Hell!" at the grinning, red eyed Magus that was perched on his bed like a vulture.

He did his best to ignore the somewhat predatory connotations. He also did his best to ignore that Zelretch of _all_ people had managed to sneak into his room and perch on his bed without even waking him up. Going down that train of thought would bring only madness and paranoia.

Instead, he tried to occupy all available brainpower on keeping himself from trying to cock back a fist and send it out as an oh-so-innocent smile formed on the old bloodsucker's face. "My _dear_ boy, I have no idea why you're so angry. I was just trying to wake you up. Really."

"You practically gave me a heart attack!" he shouted, shaking in fury at the man's utter refusal to even budge from his spot in the face of his anger. "I hope I get some _really_ good and comprehensive lessons for this, otherwise it might not even be worth it at all!"

He realized those were the exact words he _shouldn't_ have said right as they left his mouth. Then he realized he was in serious trouble as Zelretch's smile started getting _wider_.

There was a quote he remembered from a friend, a fellow fan of the Nasuverse. "When Zelretch smiles wide, pray to _God_ he's not smiling at you."

Granted, it was practically common sense in regards to the series, though he never thought it would be so fucking literal. He _especially_ never thought he'd be living it.

Eric shivered slightly as Zelretch spoke. "Really, you want _comprehensive_ lessons? Well, it'll mean quite a bit of work, but I'm so pleased you're taking your education so seriously. I shall endeavor to do my very best not to disappoint."

Quick summary? He was now officially up shit creek without a damned paddle.

…' _It's only my first fucking day!_ '

oOoOoOoOo

Eric knew going in that learning the intricacies of Magecraft, also known as Mysteries, Thaumaturgy, or The Craft, wasn't something that would happen overnight. The system for Magic in the Nasuverse was, in comparison to many others he'd seen in various other media, was _extremely_ complex. Most systems just slap some basic terminology and say "Magical Energy" with only a basic explanation for it all.

But the Thaumaturgy of the Nasuverse was very different. It wasn't usually treated as magic so much as it was treated like an outright scientific field in its own right. Hell, he knew that some Magi even made money in it through what were essentially patents for magical discoveries. The systems of Magecraft were so comprehensive and expansive that they each counted as a complete field of study, like physics or biology.

That meant studying. _Lots_ of studying. And it all got started today.

' _So why am I surprised he's set things up like this?_ '

When he'd walked with Zelretch back into the room they'd talked in, more or less the old DAA's office and living room wrapped up in one, he'd gone out of the way to prepare a student desk in front of what looked like a cardboard cutout of a _schoolroom_. There was even a big desk with a chalk board behind it.

He was also a little annoyed to see a _dunce cap_ on the desk. If Zelretch was going out of his way to get in his nerves, he was doing a good job of it.

…Then again, he was talking about _Zelretch_. If anything, that would be kind of expected.

"Class is in session," called the old Dead Apostle, currently standing behind his desk and in front of the board, a piece of chalk in hand. "Today, class, we will be discussing," he brought the chalk up, writing out the final word as he spoke it. "Magecraft."

Setting the chalk down, he walked around the desk and leaned slightly against it from the front, looking all around like the stereotypical relaxed teacher. "So, would anyone like to ask something before we all get started? There are no dumb questions."

Waiting in silence for a moment, Eric wondered if Zelretch would just move on. But, as the silence stretched out for around thirty seconds, he realized the old man wouldn't keep going until he played along. And thus, with a sigh he raised up a hand.

"Yes, Eric?"

"Are _all_ the lessons gonna be like this?"

Quicker than he could blink, he felt something fall on his head. Somehow he just knew it was the dunce cap.

"I was wrong. That _was_ a dumb question."

"And I still want an answer for it."

Zelretch smiled at him. "Ooh, not even fazed. Let's see how long it lasts. But, to answer your question, no. Only _this_ class will be structured in such a way."

He barely suppressed sigh of relief at that. He knew coming into this that Zelretch would probably troll him all to Hell, but there was just something particularly uncomfortable about feeling like he was back in Middle School or Junior High.

He knew damn well that the Big Z would probably think up stuff that would make him _beg_ to come back to this, but that was later and right now he wanted to get out of this fake classroom.

'Either way," the _teacher_ continued, "Now that that's out of the way, let's get on with the lesson. I'm sure you can already tell what we'll be studying from what's written on the board, and you could even think it might be simple because of that. Unfortunately, the art of Magecraft is more than a single term, so let's see what we can do for your first step."

Rising up from his leaning position against the desk, Zelretch motioned him forward with his hand. "Come on up, it's time for you to _take_ that first step."

Leaving his own seat and desk, Eric removed moved ahead to Zelretch's position and stood before him. Trying to look him in the eye, it was only now that Eric was really starting to see the sheer difference in height. Zelretch _towered_ over him.

The again, that was probably because of Eric's new childlike body. Still, he was pretty sure this guy outdid him in height even when he was in his adult body from before.

He somehow got the impression that Zelretch actually knew what he was thinking, considering the smug grin on his face as they held eye contact for a moment. Or was it his imagination? It was kinda hard to tell.

Then the old man reached out and removed the dunce cap from Eric's head, placing it in the desk. Bringing the hand back to rest gently on Eric's head, he spoke out "Alright, let's get started. You might feel an odd sensation, but just try to relax. I suggest closing your eyes to help."

After taking a second to glare upwards in suspicion, Eric relented and did as instructed. Closing his eyes and taking a deep breath, he did his best to relax his body in preparation for whatever Zelretch had in mind. He dearly hoped it wasn't anything too weird.

It took the better part of half a minute, but eventually he started feeling something. An odd sensation, like his whole body was reduced to water and there was a particular current flowing through him. Flowing and probing the depths of his soul, checking every nook and cranny.

….Wow, that actually sounded _really_ creepy when you thought about it, right?

Then, suddenly-

"Earth," Zelretch spoke out, his voice calm. "And Ether. Two Elements, but not closely connected. Interesting combination, but nothing particularly-"

A pause occurred in his speech, his hand seeming to still on his head as he became strangely quiet for a little while. Eric was curious about what could've caused that, but managed to keep his eyes closed.

But there was a noticeable difference in his tone as Zelretch spoke next, some kind of undercurrent. He could almost tell the old man was smiling.

"Well, _this_ is interesting," he said slowly, slightly drawing the words out as he spoke. "I must admit, I haven't seen a Dual Origin very often, even at _my_ age. But the structure of it…what's the connection, the source? Something to think about."

' _Dual Origin? ME?_ '

Dual Origins were a definite rarity in Nasuverse Magecraft, the only one he ever knew about was Kiritsugu Emiya.

…Wait, how could he have an Origin at _all_? He was surprised he even had Magic Circuits in his body, but an Origin is something that slips from Akasha into a newborn Soul as it comes into the world. How could _he_ have one when he wasn't even born in the Nasuverse to begin with?

Could it be because of how he came here? When he was slingshotted across time and space after seeing Akasha with his own eyes? Yes, that had to be it, there was no other feasible explanation. Hell, it was honestly a believable one, considering Akasha was essentially a suped-up and somewhat multiversal version of Truth from Fullmetal Alchemist.

But in that case, just what _else_ could it have done to him?

Still feeling the odd sensation of the old man essentially giving him a magical scanning, he held still as the process continued. It was around half a minute later when Zelretch seemed to have finished up, pulling his hand back. "You can open your eyes now."

He did so, slowly letting the world fill his vision again. He blinked a few times, his eyes taking a moment to adjust again. "Anything I should know?"

Zelretch smiled again. "What do you know about an Origin?"

Eric almost answered before his mouth froze. Would it really be a god idea to answer? Zelretch already knew he wasn't from this world, so wouldn't it naturally seem strange if he knew something about Magecraft at all? Wouldn't it be odd?

He looked at the old man warily, but Zelretch just waited patiently for an answer. Maybe he really was just asking a serious question.

Well, he was already in too deep to back out, so he may as well have given him an answer.

"It's a fragment of Akasha or a concept it encompasses that flows out with a soul as it's born into the world."

He nodded, apparently pleased with the answer. "Now, do you know what a Dual-Origin is?"

"It's when a person is born with two origins-"

He was interrupted by Zelretch lightly bopping him on the head with his cane. "Nope! You fail!" Followed by the dunce cap being put on his head again. "Seems I'll need to give you a bit more thorough of an explanation on Magecraft. Take your seat."

Silently walking back to the desk and taking his seat, Eric put the teasing out of his mind and focused. Zelretch might be a troll, but he wanted to believe the old man would at least take teaching him seriously enough to give him accurate information.

"Now, you answered that a Dual-Origin is actually having two Origins, right?" Eric nodded. "That's incorrect. You see, there's technically no such thing as a Dual Origin. It's just a misconception people come to as a result of lacking understanding on the matter."

Eric perked up slightly, listening intently. That was honestly something he didn't know about Thaumaturgy in the Nasuverse. Wasn't that how it was written on the wiki? Then again, the info on that thing always seemed to be changing. And the many fanfiction ideas didn't really help matters.

"You see, a _Dual-Origin_ isn't really getting two different Origins, simply a _single_ Origin expressing itself by splitting into two parts of the same concept. They are often apparently opposed to one another, with the two concepts being as different as the two sides of a coin, though this isn't always the case. Sometimes they might not seem to have a connection at all, but there is always a connection to them if you just look closely enough."

Taking out a notebook and jotting down whatever he could, Eric was now a little pleased that Zelretch had provided him with school supplies. This was some important information that needed to be filed away for future use.

"There is also often a connection between someone's Origin and there Element, though this isn't a hard rule by any means. Even an Element completely unconnected to someone's Origin can mesh with it in unexpected ways, though it often takes a bit more creativity to do so. You getting all this?"

"Writing it down," he answered, pencil writing furiously as he heard more.

The lecture on Origins and Elements went a little further, with Zelretch continuing his teaching and explanations as Eric continued taking notes, occasionally broken as he asked a question. It honestly wasn't very different from those days he spent in regular school, though the subject matter was entirely different from anything he'd ever dealt with.

Eventually it came to an end, with a collection of _10_ pages of notes written down for him to do his best to memorize and fully integrate into future lessons. Pretty productive so far.

"So," Zelretch said calmly, "now that we've covered that, any questions before we move onto the meat of the lecture?"

' _Questions?_ '

Well…what could he ask? Considering what little he knew of Zelretch in canon there was a good chance he wouldn't give many opportunities for a straight answer. And he'd said himself that he'd take teaching him seriously during their lessons. So, what could he ask?

A number of options went through his mind, each more tempting than the last, but he held back on picking the first thing to come to his mind. He'd need to consider this carefully.

Then, after going over a number of potential questions, one in particular popped into his mind. "What's my Origin?"

"Ah, good one. A bit predictable, but good."

Picking up the chalk again, he turned to the blackboard and scraped it on. "Here it is."

 **Absorb/Surge**

"Absorb and Surge," Eric muttered, forehead knotting in contemplation. "That's my Origin? I'm not really seeing how they actually connect in some way, so what am I missing?"

His teacher shrugged. "You'll have to figure that out yourself. If it makes you feel any better you're not the only one, lots of Magi have needed to spend plenty of time experimenting with their abilities before they really found out what their Origin allowed them to do or what its deeper meanings were."

He groaned. "So that means even more work."

"Did you think it would be easy?"

He shook his head. "No, I already figured this was gonna be complicated, but I'm pretty sure anyone would hope for things to go by a bit quicker."

"True," the DAA conceded. "Unfortunately, those quicker ways tend to end badly. Fortunately for you the fact that your sole teaching will be specifically from me means it may be sped up somewhat. Now, let's get to it."

oOoOoOoOo

Several hours later and Eric was practically buried in books, each one being a beginner source of information into a different form of Magecraft. Alchemy, Necromancy, Spiritual Evocation, Mineralogy, Familiars, literally a book for every topic and then some.

And Zelretch told him he needed to read _all_ of them.

( _"Oooh boy," Eric muttered, staring in almost physical pain at the many books Zelretch had picked out for him. Easily more than a dozen in number, nearing two. He could already feel the headache forming._

 _And he could EASILY sense the grin Zelretch was sending from behind him. "Oh, don't complain. Just pace yourself to take it one step at a time and you'll be fine. You'll have all the material covered in a span of probably….two months. A little less if you're diligent."_

" _And I'll need to write an essay for each book once I finish it to show what I've learned from them all, right?"_

" _That's right," Zelretch responded, nodding in affirmation. "It's actually the same thing my own teacher did with me a long time ago, believe it or not."_

 _Now THAT was a little surprising. "You had a teacher?"_

 _The old man looked at him like he'd asked a stupid question –which in all honesty he DID- "Of course I had a teacher, did you think I got all these skills from nothing? Everyone needs someone to give them their foundation at the start. But enough talk, get reading!")_

All in all, it was another one of those things that you would logically expect but still get surprised from due to just not placing much mental emphasis on it. He already knew from the series that becoming a Mage in the Nasuverse was a very academic pursuit that demanded intense study, but he still thought there would be some measure emphasis place on more _physical_ lessons.

…Then again, considering how Magic/Magecraft in the Nasuverse worked, there was every possibility that going straight into lessons without a strong foundation on theory could end up blowing him to pieces. At _BEST_.

He had always been an avid reader, at least when a particular book had grabbed his interest. Fantasy was the most common genre he'd found himself reading, whether the low variant or higher, and he was essentially _living_ in a fantasy genre here and now while learning it from the ground up.

Granted, it was a particularly dangerous and dark version of a fantasy world, but it still counted. It gave him extra motivation at the very least.

And somehow, by a fortunate stroke of luck, the subjects in some of these books really _were_ perking his interest. He never really considered himself much of a nerd, but academic books never really got his mind going like this. Maybe it was because of the subject matter, maybe the necessity of learning it to survive, but he was breezing through the pages.

 **[The Science of the Material World – A Beginners Guide to Alchemy]**

From what he remembered of the classes he took at High School, Alchemy actually seemed to have a lot in common with Chemistry. If Physics was the study of the invisible laws of the world and its esoteric workings, Chemistry was studying the processed and laws of the _physical_ world. Alchemy was much the same, but with a decidedly mystical twist that was just strong enough to perk the fantasy nut in him while not thick enough to be hard to grasp. Maybe it's just because he was just starting or maybe it was because he hadn't been around this stuff long enough for it to become routine, but it looked like he'd be making good progress with at least _one_ subject.

oOoOoOoOo Kischur Zelretch Schweinorg oOoOoOoOo

Smirking at the sight before him, Zelretch nodded ever so slightly in approval at his apprentice as he studied the current book in his hands. Seemed the first one he picked up was something he actually found some interest in.

' _I don't think he even realizes the progress he's already made on that thing._ '

From the looks of it he'd already gone through roughly a quarter of it. Granted, it was essentially a beginner's manual of only a little over a hundred and fifty pages, but it was nonetheless surprising. And it looked like the material was actually sticking to him.

Seems the boy could be a better student than he'd expected. At the rate he was going and assuming he'd take to at least half of the books as well as this first one then he could probably get the reading and work material done within half the timeframe he'd assigned him.

Zelretch was distantly aware that there seemed to be something akin to excitement building up at the opportunity to see what would happen with all this. Apprentices in general could be rather hit or miss when it came to entertainment value, and it wasn't just because they didn't tend to share his sense of humor. Seriously, when did all Magi turn into such boorish and bookish types?

…..Then again, maybe they had always been like that and he'd never bothered to notice. He rarely bothered to take note of anything that didn't set itself apart or somehow perk his interest.

Either way, he'd found something to occupy his interest now, and that's what mattered most. If the boy ended up becoming everything he could hope and _hold_ his interest as a long term investment, well that was just a great big cherry on top of the sundae.

But that was for later. For now, he'd just need to leave the boy be for his studying.

Turning his back on the young apprentice, he exited the room and headed off to find something to amuse himself. He'd heard about some of the upper crust of the Mineralogy Department getting together for some kind of great celebration, so maybe he could attend. It wasn't like anyone would turn him away.

Plus, he found it so very amusing to enter a celebration where the subject of cheers was his seeming to _leave_ them be after not inflicting some sort of prank on them. Irony had such a sweet taste to it when done right.

oOoOoOoOo

' _Ah, there's nothing funnier than sharing a toast with a man over your own departure. The poor man was too drunk to even know who he was actually toasting with._ '

The party had gone on for a few hours, Zelretch using his abilities to appear as a different person every once in a while to mingle anonymously amongst the different groups and circles present within the celebration. Party or not, no place in the Clock Tower was truly free from the politics present, making it necessary to change appearances to mingle amongst them all.

While it put up an _appearance_ of unity to other groups outside itself, the Clock Tower was a hotbed of different factions fighting for influence and supremacy, practically a small scale Cold War between the groups involved.

On the very top were the three major factions; the Barthomeloi, the Trambelio, and the Meluastea.

The Barthomeloi faction, as one would expect from the name, largely represented the upper political groups of the Mages Association, the Lords and other prominent political figures that dictated policies and interactions with the larger world outside the Clock Tower itself. While there wasn't _technically_ a leader of it, the Barthomeloi family was universally considered the 'Primus Inter Pares', the First Among Equals. Unsurprising, considering they were probably the most influential of Magi families since the Association was even founded.

The second group, the Trambelio faction, was something of a more recent addition. A largely 'Democratic' centered group, it consisted of the many smaller and less influential families of the Clock Tower, many of whom had joined rather recently. The Clock Tower was a very traditional and elitist organization, meaning the newest people to join often started with next to nothing and had to work twice as hard to advance as some Noble who got by on blood. It was only a matter of time until they started grouping together for the sake of changing those traditions and butting heads with the Barthomeloi faction, though it hadn't gotten to the point of anything too open.

Lastly, there was the Meluastea faction, largely called the neutral group in the Clock Tower. Unlike the other two, the latter was largely unconcerned with the politics of Magic and more interested in the academics behind it. Focusing solely on intellectual pursuits through Magecraft and the refinement of the known and discoveries _unknown_ , they were almost entirely focused on the curriculum and academia of the students themselves. That wasn't to say they _completely_ stayed out of the politics, however. While they rarely intervened in the politics of the Clock Tower personally, they were often approached due to their status as a neutral party to settle disputes, and there were of course occasional overtures from the other groups to gain some ground and influence over the students and potential future prospects of the Association. Though the Meluastea weren't exactly innocent, considering how often they fanned the flames between the Barthomeloi and Trambelio to keep them focused on _each other_.

And of course, that was without even _beginning_ to delve into the many smaller groups within those factions that were pursuing their own interests. The Lords trying to shuffle around for more influence with the Barthomeloi, the struggles within the Trambelio to decide which courses of action to take and who would hold power when everything came to fruition, and the internal disputes between the Academia branches of the Meluastea and how to distribute funding. It was all quite the chaotic mess of bickering, ambition, and undiluted self-interest.

It honestly wasn't very surprising to him, however depressing that may seem. Zelretch was, first and foremost, an _exceptionally_ old man. Old enough that people were still debating if he was actually the man who founded the Department of Mineralogy. Not too surprising, considering its traditional title, Kishur, was one letter away from actually being his own name. And it was a little secret he had no intention of clearing up.

Either way, he'd been around in the world more than long enough to know how this worked. Whenever people gathered together for whatever reason, there would always be schisms that formed as a result of clashing ideologies or interests. Unity gave way to the basic greed and desires of the Human race. That was how it always went.

' _Seems there are just some things that never change._ '

Checking his pocket watch for the time, he was mildly surprised to note that a few hours had passed by while he was attending the party. He hadn't meant to be gone _that_ long, just for long enough to get a brief feel for the current political climate of the Clock Tower.

And also to see the look on little Lorelei's face when she saw him wandering around. It was one of the few occasions where she deigned to show herself, so he couldn't possibly miss it. She seemed to be the only one capable of telling whenever he showed up and see through his disguises somehow. Which made it even more entertaining when he kept on switching appearances to try and keep her guessing. She had the funniest expression whenever he did that, a tension on her face that implied she _desperately_ wanted to rush up and punch him in the throat but wouldn't _dare_ tarnish her image in front of so many witnesses.

' _Ah well, fun's over for today. Time to go check up on my new investment._ '

Heading back to his rooms in the most luxurious penthouse area of the Clock Tower (Being the Wizard Marshall definitely had its advantages), he headed to the room he'd set aside for teaching his newest apprentice to check his progress.

Opening the door with a quick shout of "Honey, I'm home!" his eyes settled on the young boy and glittered slightly as it looked like he was about to collapse from a heart attack from the sudden intrusion and noise.

Still trying to get his heart rate under control after the sudden shock, Eric glared back at him for the intrusion. Book clenched in his hand, he honestly looked like he was about to throw it at him. Wouldn't be the first time someone did something like that in response to one of his intrusions.

"Jeez, what the hell!? You almost gave me a heart attack!"

"Training!" he said forcefully in response. "This is a dangerous world you're entering into, and you can't trust those dangers to politely knock on the door and ask to come in. You need to keep your guard up, need to be ready for _anything_ that could come your way. And if the only way to do that is by surprising you every day to the point that you are numb to shock, then it's a responsibility I _must_ fulfill as your teacher!"

"Bullshit," Eric cussed, finally throwing the book at him which Zelretch deftly caught. "You're just trying to come up with an excuse to see me jump out of my skin!"

He smiled. "Also that, yes. On another note, please don't throw your books at people like that; it's not only rude, but also quite wasteful to the reading material." He turned the book, seeing the title. "I mean, this Alchemy guide might be basic, but…..huh?"

 **[A Magi's Best Friend – A Beginners Guide to Familiars]**

Taking a moment to make sure he got the title right, he couldn't deny that this was really a different book from before. The Familiars guide from the same basic series, written by a Magi as a series of simple and effective instruction manuals. "Got tired of reading the last one, eh?"

Eric looked a little confused at the question. "Tired? No, I just finished it and moved onto the next book."

'… _.Wha?_ '

"Hold on, you're saying you _finished it_? It was a little over 150 pages, how could you finish it in a little over three hours?"

Eric shrugged, his expression not even slightly concerned. "A combination of having some work experience with speed-reading and not taking any breaks. I was always a bit of an….. _avid_ reader. You won't believe how many books I took out of the library for one semester at school."

So he really finished it? If so…

"What's the material most conductive for channeling Prana as a conduit?"

"Gold."

"What metal is most effective for Prana storage in a vacuum?"

"Trick question; that would be a copper core for containing the Prana surrounded by a silver shell to keep the Prana from leaking."

"Why is bronze such an effective material for crafting mineral based Mystic Codes?"

"Because it's an alloy metal that's capable of effectively integrating itself into any part of a circuit to create a seamless conduit with minimal loss of energy in transit."

Zelretch continued the question like that for another five minutes or so, some of them basic and others a bit more complex, but each one was responded to by an effective answer. He didn't take them from only a single aspect of the book material either, picking questions that could be related to parts from the beginning, middle, and end of the reading material to make sure Eric hadn't skipped anything and only _pretended_ to finish it.

The boy got every question right. He really _did_ read the whole damn thing in roughly three hours. Hot damn.

"You were a total nerd before I ever picked you up, weren't you?"

Eric just picked another book to throw at him which he deftly caught, prompting an exaggerated sigh from the old man. "What did I literally _just_ tell you about throwing these books?"

"Maybe you should explain it in written form, it's apparently so much easier for me to remember."

The Wizard Marshall couldn't help but chuckle a little at that one.

oOoOoOoOo

Seated in his chair, Zelretch observed the outside world through a small collection of special distortions around him. Going out meant he could only look into one thing at a time, so this little trick he devised was quite useful for keeping tabs on people.

Little Lorelei was in her office, checking up on reports for recent activity among the Dead Apostle Ancestors and their potential replacements. Seems one in particular had been active recently, one uninvolved in the Aylesbury Valesti Ritual. Interesting.

Meanwhile, that little survivor of the most recent Grail War seemed to have gotten a bit of a spine. He might not be of note now, but he was starting to show some real ambition. Looking for potential allies amongst his peers, seeking possible patrons. Appears he's learned something from Iskandar.

Unfortunately, not too much beyond that seemed to be of much interest. The rest was just the regular comings and goings of day to day business of the Clock Tower. Research, secret alliances, teaching students, horny students trying to insist on tantric rituals for _research_ purposes, all that typical stuff that he'd long since lost significant interest in.

Which left his own student as the one thing left to pay much attention to.

The past week since he'd finished that book went by surprisingly quietly. Granted, Zelretch wasn't exactly expecting things to be exciting, but watching a boy studying Magecraft from a book with little input as a teacher tended to get old pretty quickly. And Eric's actual willingness to trade snark with him only went so far to lessen that.

But, if nothing else, the boy managed to get through the studies very well. He was effectively reading the material and retaining it, and was currently in the middle of writing the essay for Mineralogy. He seemed to be halfway done so far, though he occasionally consulted the book for details he may have forgotten. He had off-handedly admitted that he was going to do an essay on Familiars next, before he started on the other books afterwards.

He was already getting a bit of an idea for what kind of skills Eric was taking to best. He breezed through Mineralogy the quickest, with the books on Familiars and Spiritual Evocation finishing not long after on the next day. He wasn't sure how he'd take the rest of the material, but he had to admit that the bar was being set pretty high after the performance so far.

Then again, his life would likely depend on how well he was able to integrate all this, so perhaps it wasn't _too_ surprising. Nothing like long-term endangerment of one's own life to encourage growth. One of the facts of life, right?

"Teacher?"

Zelretch quirked an eyebrow. "Yes, my impudent apprentice?"

"What am I gonna do when I'm actually done with all the reading and essays? I know this is all part of getting started, but I'm still kinda curious."

"Thinking ahead already, eh?"

Zelretch clicked his tongue, thinking over his answer. "After reading the manuals, I plan on having you read up some basic rituals for the subjects you showed the best ability to take in and remember. Probably Mineralogy, considering you finished that first."

After that, Eric actually seemed to show a little genuine excitement. The thought of actually being able to practice some real Magecraft seemed to bring out some enthusiasm. Not that he could really blame him, he'd been much the same in the early days of his own apprenticeship.

' _That said….'_

oOoOoOoOo One Week Ago oOoOoOoOo

("Alright, let's get started. You might feel an odd sensation, but just try to relax. I suggest closing your eyes to help."

Ignoring the boy's glare, Zelretch prepared himself for the scanning of Eric's Magic Circuits. This wasn't exactly the most delicate procedure he'd ever enacted, but it still required some degree of focus and finesse.

With a hand on the boy's head, Zelretch began the process to scan his Magic Circuits. Feeling his own Circuits warm up slightly in response to his basic use of The Craft, he felt the still odd sensation of most of his consciousness seem to shut down as something extended from his mind to _touch_ Eric's Magic Circuits.

Now the interesting part began. Finding someone's Element(s) wasn't just a process of searching for something like a sign deep within, it was a subtle influence it had on the Circuits themselves. The Magic Circuits of someone with Water as their Element seemed to possess an almost fluid quality to them, Earth gave an impression of solidity and hardness, etc.

He'd gone through this process a few times by now, so he knew the telltale signs of someone's Elemental Alignment and Eric was no different in that regard.

' _Physically hard,_ ' he thought, feeling (for lack of a better term) the strength that accompanied Earth. But there was another sensation in it alongside, somehow giving the impression of something formless and ever-shifting. It didn't have a viscous enough quality to resemble Water, so…..

' _Ether. A Dual Element with Earth and Ether._ '

"Earth," Zelretch spoke out, keeping his voice even. "And Ether. Two Elements, but not closely connected. Interesting combination, but nothing particularly-"

He stopped, words stuck in his throat as he sensed _something_ else. ' _What in the world?_ '

He gave the Magic Circuits a closer look, waiting to see if the same thing would happen, to see if he'd feel that same sensation.

It happened again, a light pulsing coming from deeper in. ' _Well, well, what do we have here?_ '

His sense of curiosity kicking in, he couldn't keep himself from looking deeper to find the source of this strange phenomenon, Eric's Origin (Dual Origin to be precise) quickly became clear as his consciousness drifted closer to the root of the boy's very soul.

And that was when he saw it. Something he could honestly and truthfully say he hadn't _ever_ seen before.

Something. He. Hadn't. _Seen_. _**BEFORE**_.

' _I do so LOVE moments in life like this._ '

oOoOoOoOo Present Day oOoOoOoOo

He still hadn't told him about what he'd found, instead just telling him about his Elements and Origin and hoping it would be enough to hold his curiosity. There was no telling how he could react to finding out he held something even his own teacher couldn't fully identify, but the two most likely possibilities were either panic or trying to analyze it himself. Neither of which were likely to end well.

He obviously had no intention of keeping it secret forever, that would straight up be a very bad move. But if nothing else he'd like to have some time to observe and work up a hypothesis first, be able to actually explain what he'd discovered. Magecraft was dangerous at the best of times, and something unknown was _especially_ dangerous if tampered with.

At least he could say it wasn't harmful, he was able to tell at least that much from observing how it was connecting to the rest of Eric's Magic Circuits. It wasn't parasitic or detrimental, and seemed connected in only the barest sense, but it wasn't hurting him. That at least gave him some time to observe.

While he couldn't really be sure of anything, he believed the strange phenomenon may have some connection to his traveling through dimensional boundaries. The only feasible manners through which it could happen were either through the Second Magic or Akasha itself, and he was damned sure that the second could have any number of effects on people.

Regardless, it seemed his only course of action at the time would be to observe and document. Once he'd found out exactly what he was dealing with, he'd tell Eric and they'd work together on finding out what it could do. Then, perhaps more importantly, how it could be _used_.

He absently noted that his hand was shaking slightly from the excitement. He just _knew_ this apprentice was going to be fun.

 **xXx**

Hey folks, did ya miss me?

Anyways, I'd really like to apologize for the long wait here. Not just for this fic, but for the longer gap than usual for my updates schedule. A lot has happened recently, and while I'm happy to say most of the happenings have actually been positive, I'm afraid they've still taken time out that I could've used to write more quickly.

It also doesn't help that I got Persona 5 and I CAN'T STOP PLAYING IT! Best in the series so far, bar none.

In other news, it's getting increasingly hard to hold back the imagination bug that buzzing and clicking in my head to give me more ideas, so I might let some new fics out soon. I'm gonna try and come up with a workable writing schedule to speed up the updates, so at least there's that. But I'm gonna put out the next chapter for "The Will To Power" first.

If anyone is a little surprised at the length of this chapter not matching up with the last, it's because of two things. 1, I'm pretty sure you've all suffered enough of a wait already. 2, there honestly wasn't THAT much to cover here beyond the starting of his Academia under Zelretch, and drawing it out would've been a pointless slog. Length is a good thing for a chapter in some ways, but if the content isn't varied than it just starts getting harder to read and care about.

As for his abilities in the future, I've already got them figured out. Not giving things away, but I'm pretty sure you'll all be pleased. And as for what Zelretch discovered, it WILL be important later, but right now it's kinda gonna be in the background.

Once again, please point out any typos or errors you see so I can correct them. Grammar and spelling is important to making a good flow, and such errors can easily take away from it.

Please review and have a nice day!


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